SYU 5. Kicked by the Donkey at Home

That afternoon, after they got back from the hotel, Wu Jinshan took a sick leave and went straight to the ophthalmologist.

Chen Xiucheng, on the other hand, looked completely worn out. After finishing his afternoon classes, he went back to the dorm to shower and wash his hair. He didn’t even bother with dinner. He collapsed into bed and slept straight through until noon the next day.

Because of Wu Jinshan’s cold and distant personality, he always gave off an icy aura that made people keep their distance wherever he went. So when he showed up with one side of his face swollen, most people at school didn’t dare to ask.

It wasn’t until the weekend, when he went to soccer practice, that someone finally said something. Captain Zhong Lei, who had always been curious and figured it was part of his job to look after the team, casually brought it up in the locker room while changing clothes.

“Hey, what happened to your eye? Looks like you took a hit.”

Wu Jinshan was in the middle of taking off his shirt. His expression darkened instantly.
“Got kicked by the donkey at home.”

The thing was, Wu Jinshan’s family really did have donkeys. A lot of them.

His family ran a ranch. Starting from his great-grandfather’s generation, they had taken advantage of the natural grasslands and climate in their hometown to build what eventually became Liangshan Ranch. Over time, the business expanded to include dairy and meat processing.

By the time it reached his father’s generation, Liangshan Ranch had grown into a fairly well-known and sizable enterprise.

Originally, no one at school knew about it. It only came out because of an accident one day. A shipment of fresh milk arrived at the cafeteria, and the delivery guy just happened to run into Wu Jinshan as he was coming out of the cafeteria after breakfast. The moment he saw him, he shouted excitedly, “Young Master Shan!”

After that, even people who didn’t know him began to realize that Wu Jinshan’s family owned the original ranch behind that milk brand. It was the same milk everyone drank and occasionally saw in ads.

Wu Jinshan never wanted attention, but that day was just bad luck. The original delivery driver had suddenly gotten a stomach bug right before leaving. Since his second uncle had business in Qinhai that day anyway, he ended up making the delivery himself.

But that wasn’t the only thing his second uncle dropped off. Along with the delivery, he also brought a box of barbecued pork made by Wu Jinshan’s stepmother.

“This is from your aunt. Just made it at home, still hot. Hurry up and eat.” His second uncle grinned and casually tossed the box into Wu Jinshan’s arms before walking off.

Wu Jinshan stared at the six-pound box of barbecued pork in his hands, feeling just as heavy as the box. He liked barbecued pork, but there was no way he could finish that much in one day. Their dorm didn’t even have a fridge. Was he supposed to donate the leftovers to the cafeteria?

In the end, it was Chen Xiucheng who came to the rescue. He had connections and knew practically everyone, from professors across departments to classmates in various majors. In just half a semester, he had managed to network with nearly half the school.

There was no one Chen Xiucheng couldn’t befriend. Well, except for that weirdo Wu Jinshan.

Of course, it wasn’t just out of kindness that Chen Xiucheng helped. The moment he laid eyes on that mountain of meat, he completely lost it. Overjoyed, he ran from dorm to dorm, spreading the word like wildfire.

The pork was shared out in no time, and along the way, Wu Jinshan managed to earn a little goodwill from others too.

Hmph.

Looking back on it now, Chen Xiucheng felt like his kindness had gone completely unrewarded.

As for Wu Jinshan’s eye, the examination came back fine. Just a couple of heavy punches that had left some lingering swelling.

It might have affected something else too…

Ever since his eye turned black and blue, Chen Xiucheng hadn’t said a word to him. That wasn’t like him. But then again, Wu Jinshan was never the type to start a conversation either.

The dorm was finally quiet, but Wu Jinshan found himself increasingly restless.